DECLARING CONVICTIONS

Usually a very controversial subject, should an ex offender declare his or her convictions to a potential employer?
Whilst the employer hyas a right to ask about previous convictions+ it is a problem faced by anyone wanting to put the past behind them and make a fresh start.
I’ve been in that situation and my own experience is that if I am asked I tell the truth and say goodbye to the job. However there have also been occasions when I haven’t been asked, and on those occasions I have invariably not declared anything.
That is fraught with danger though, indeed I have served a 12 month swentence for not declaring my convictions actually having been charged and convicted with obtaining a pecunary advantage, i.e. my wages, by deception.
Obviously in an example case where a former sex offender with convictions for offences against children is seeking employment then any relevant convictions need to be declared but that is a rare example.
There are no real reasons for an employer to have the information unless it is specifically relevant to the job being sought. Why should an ex con for example be forced to declare the convictions when seeking employment as a gardener, just one example.
The whole question is one which will never be answered and my own view is that each situation, each job application is an individual matter and there can never be one simple generic answer. Always remember though the law is against you and never encourages rehabilitationj.